INDIANAPOLIS – The expanded Great Midwest Athletic Conference has cast a wider net around minor league baseball as former student-athletes climb the organizational ladders to hopefully someday get the call to ‘the Show.’
 
The Great Midwest checked in on a few former student-athletes that are currently down on the farm, including the progress from alumni of current and incoming league member institutions.
 
Information and stats as of June 14 has been pulled from MiLB.com, Baseball-Reference.com, BaseballAmerica.com and BaseballProspectus.com.
 
 
David Ledbetter – Round Rock Express (Texas Rangers) – Triple A
Drafted – 3rd Round (2013) – Cedarville University – RHP
 
Ledbetter was drafted with his twin brother, Ryan (19th-round selection), by the same organization together in 2013 after locking down Great Midwest opponents at Cedarville. David is in his fifth year with the Texas Rangers’ organization after Ryan was released earlier this spring by the franchise.
 
The Anderson, Ind., native currently has a 1-4 win-loss record with a 5.70 ERA in his first taste of AA ball in the Texas League while appearing in 15 games. He has started four games on the mound and is averaging over a strikeout per inning (38 in 36.1 IP).
 
He recently struck out seven against Corpus Christi on June 8 and is coming two scoreless relief innings tossed against Midland.
 
In the G-MAC’s inaugural 2013 season, David Ledbetter struck out 106 batters in 71.1 innings pitched and was 6-5 with a 3.15 ERA. He is the Great Midwest’s highest MLB First-Year Player Draft selection in five complete years of the league’s history.

Ledbetter was promoted and made his AAA debut for the Round Rock Express and beat the Iowa Cubs on June 22. 
 
 
Chris McDonald – Extended Spring Training (Pittsburgh Pirates)
Signed – FA (2016) – Hillsdalle College – RHP
 
McDonald was signed as a free agent by the Pittsburgh Pirates after setting the single-season school record for saves last spring. He originally signed with the Eastside Diamond Hoppers of the United Shores Professional Baseball League, an independent circuit.
 
Despite a small sample size, McDonald, a 6-6 righty, more than held his own in the Gulf Coast League in eight games. He was 3-1 with a 3.55 ERA in a relief role with 25.1 innings pitched. His best outing was a no-decision with five scoreless innings against the GCL Blue Jays last year on August 19. He is currently in extended spring training and awaiting assignment.

 
Ryan Rua – Texas Rangers
Drafted – 17th Round (2011) – Lake Erie College – OF, 2B, 3B
 
Rua was the first player from Lake Erie to be drafted and made his debut with the Texas Rangers in August of 2014. He is a key piece of the puzzle on the franchise’s active roster while providing positional versatility and is one game shy of No. 200 in his career played at the MLB level.
 
Rua has been in the professional ranks for seven seasons and is a .245 hitter with 17 home runs and 54 RBI. He has played in 44 games this year with three homers and 11 RBI.  
 
 
Luke Raley – Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (Los Angeles Dodgers) – Class A Advanced
Drafted – 7th Round (2016) – Lake Erie College - OF
 
Raley has been on an accelerated track through the Los Angeles Dodgers’ organization after zipping through Ogden in the Pioneer League, the Arizona League affiliate and shining in the Low-A Midwest League with the Great Lakes Loons, in his rookie year.
 
Raley has continued to rake in the Cal League with seven home runs, 22 RBI and a .286 average in 61 games. The 22-year old lefty swinging outfielder has also stolen eight bases and has nine doubles and four triples.
 
On a side note, Rancho Cucamonga used to be the affiliate of the Angels, the same team that Mike Trout went through during his ascent to stardom.
 
 
Chris Smith – Buffalo Bisons (Toronto Blue Jays) – Triple A
Signed – FA (2013) – Kentucky Wesleyan College – RHP
 
Smith has made the Kentucky Wesleyan faithful proud with a long journey through the minors that began in 2013 with the New York Yankees. Smith actually didn’t appear in any games with Kentucky Wesleyan as a Great Midwest league member, but fast forward a few years and the Louisville native is knocking on the door to the big leagues at Triple-A Buffalo.
 
His fourth year in the minors has 4.15 ERA, 1-1 win-loss record and a pair of saves so far this season. Overall, since 2013 Smith has a 2.43 ERA, pitched in 121 games, held batters to a .206 average and has 199 strikeouts in 177.2 innings.
 
On a sidenote, 2016 G-MAC Player of the Year Troy Paris is currently with the Salina Stockade of the American Association League (following a trade) and went 2-for-3 with a double and a pair of walks in his first game with a new team. Paris was previously on the White Sands Pupfish and hit .436 in just 10 games (39 at-bats).


Matt Pobereyko – Columbia Fireflies (New York Mets) – Class A
Signed – FA (2016) – Kentucky Wesleyan College – RHP

In recent memory, the glasses-sporting flamethrower produced some of the best pitching lines the league has seen while taking the mound for Kentucky Wesleyan. Pobereyko landed with the Arizona Diamondbacks' organization back in 2016 as a free agent and had stints with the AZL squad, the Hillsboro Hops in rookie ball and went through Visalia in the Cal League at the Class A-Advanced level.

Just like he did in the the Panthers' uniform, the strikeouts were there and then some with a K/9 ratio well above 9.00. After being released, Pobereyko surfaced again with the Columbia Fireflies recently in the South Atlantic League. He was teammates with Tim Tebow for a few games, but is making noise with six strikeouts in two scoreless innings so far.

Pobereyko is one of just four pitchers to toss a no-hitter in Great Midwest history, doing so against Alderson Broaddus on April 5, 2015. He set the single-game conference records for strikeouts (18) in that game and has the single-season league record in opponent batting average (.183 in 2015). He won nine games in 2015 for KWC. 
 
 
Ryan Colegate – Lake County Captains (Cleveland Indians) – Class A
Drafted – 36th Round (2015) – Ohio Dominican University – RHP
 
Colegate has appeared in the Arizona Rookie League, short-season New York-Penn League and is now working through the Midwest League with the Lake County Captains. A 6-5 righty, Colegate was an NCAA All-American on the mound at Ohio Dominican and had a career record of 15-8 with a 3.08 ERA.
 
He has currently pitched in eight games this season and logged a total of 14 innings from the bullpen.
 
 
Hunter Newman – State College Spikes (St. Louis Cardinals) – Class A Short Season
Drafted – 22nd Round (2015) – Trevecca Nazarene University  – 1B
 
Newman demolished just about every hitting conference career record he could before being drafted in 2015 by the St. Louis Cardinals in the middle rounds. He starred at TNU at the hot corner before changing defensive positions at first base in the minors.
 
He has dealt with injuries in his short professional journey, returning back to the Appy League and Johnson City for a 15-game stint to finish out 2016.
 
Newman, from Chapmansboro, Tenn., is a career .272 minor-league hitter and has played in 83 games. He will reportedly be assigned to the New-York Penn League this summer to the State College Spikes, the St. Louis short-season A affiliate.